History GeniusBruiser / Literature

* Creator/KarlEdwardWagner's ''Literature/{{Kane}}'': The hero Kane is described as one "who could master any situation intellectually, or rip heads off if push came to shove". Over 6ft tall, 300lb of muscle - and one of his former occupations included being a successful sorcerer. Also something of a VillainProtagonist.

* ''Franchise/DocSavage'':

* In ''Literature/SuperPowereds'', its pretty much a necessity for any strongman-type Hero to also be well-versed in tactics and strategy. This is because no DumbMuscle would ever graduate the [[SuperheroSchool HCP]], as any of their competition would easily outthink and outmaneuver them. Thus only the best of the best are given the title Hero. This is exemplified by Titan, the protagonist of the spin-off novel ''Literature/{{Corpies}}'', who is likely the physically strongest man in the world while also preferring to think ten times before he acts, in large part because a mistake by someone as strong as him ([[spoiler:he lifts a HumongousMecha at one point without breaking a sweat]]) is likely to result in many casualties. In the main series, he does his best to imbue this trope into his son Roy, who spends the early books as DumbMuscle, figuring his strength is enough to get him through, only to be mercilessly beaten by Chad, the top student in their class. [[spoiler:When Vince is nearing graduation, he's approached by Jeremiah, Titan's acquaintance (and boyfriend), who suggests that Vince intern under him, so that he can teach Vince (who already knows how to fight well) how to ''think'' as well as he can fight. Vince accepts. In the DistantFinale, Vince (AKA Jack of All) becomes one of the most feared (and respected) Heroes in the country.]]

* In ''Literature/SuperPowereds'', its pretty much a necessity for any strongman-type Hero to also be well-versed in tactics and strategy. This is because no DumbMuscle would ever graduate the [[SuperheroSchool HCP]], as any of their competition would easily outthink and outmaneuver them. Thus only the best of the best are given the title Hero. This is exemplified by Titan, the protagonist of the spin-off novel ''Literature/{{Corpies}}'', who is likely the physically strongest man in the world while also preferring to think ten times before he acts, in large part because a mistake by someone as strong as him ([[spoiler:he lifts a HumongousMecha at one point without breaking a sweat]]) is likely to result in many casualties. In the main series, he does his best to imbue this trope into his son Roy, who spends the early books as DumbMuscle, figuring his strength is enough to get him through, only to be mercilessly beaten by Chad, the top student in their class. [[spoiler:When Vince is nearing graduation, he's approached by Jeremiah, Titan's acquaintance (and boyfriend), who suggests that Vince intern under him, so that he can teach Vince (who already knows how to fight well) how to ''think'' as well as he can fight. Vince accepts.]]

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* ''Literature/HonorHarrington'' is positively in love with this trope. The examples start just from its title character, Honor Harrington, who, in addition to her military genius, is also a ''very'' big and strong {{heavyworlder}} woman with a 7'th degree black belt in ''coup de vitesse''. There are also Anton Zilwicki (the genius hacker and intelligence officer built like a brick outhouse and a three times Greco-Roman wrestling champion in Manticoran Games) and Sir Horace Harkness, another brilliant hacker and engineer who fights with {{Space Marine}}s just for fun. A number of marines themselves qualify too -- like General Kevin Usher, the chief Havenite cop, who once [[ObfuscatingStupidity affected a persona of a drunkard]], or Brigadier Thomas Santiago Ramirez, who, being {{heavyworlder}}, is much bigger and stronger than most of the cast, or Major Thandi Palane, Victor Cachat's girlfriend... And [[LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters many, many others]].

* ''Literature/TheHungerGames'': Thresh spends majority of the Game camped out in a wheat field that [[MuggingTheMonster not even the Careers want to risk trespassing.]] Katniss and Peeta notes that not only did it given Thresh the advantage of being the most nourished competitor, but because of all the potential hazards in the field, it would make going after him risky.

** Alsebra is a battle dragoness who happens to be both deadly and gracious with her sword, as well as highly intelligent.

%%* Many of Creator/RobertEHoward's larger-than-life pulp heroes - Conan, King Kull, SolomonKane, etc. - are not just Genius Bruisers, but Genius LightningBruiser [[TheBerserker Berserkers]]. The same also goes for many other pulp characters (notably Tarzan, as mentioned above). Seriously, these are ''very scary people'', folks; thank gods they all have ''scruples''...

* ''Literature/BazilBroketail'': Lessis is a wise and powerful witch, but she can handle herself all right in direct fight. In fact, she scores ''more'' kills in melee combat than due to her spells.

* Robert E. Howard's ''Literature/ConanTheBarbarian'': Conan himself is one of the smartest men in the world[[note]]{Unlike in the Creator/ArnoldSchwarzenegger movies, where he is a stoic lump of muscle, largely because the young Governator had trouble with his English lines so they gave him as few as possible)[[/note]] - not given to academic study before he became king and it became a necessity, but a very quick practical thinker with a vicious cunning, a prodigious gift for languages, and surprising depth of thought when called for. This aspect of the character is probably highlighted most clearly in ''Literature/TheBlackStranger'', a pirate yarn in which he single-handedly outfights and outwits Pictish warbands, viking raiders, cut-throat pirates, an exiled noble ''and'' a hunting demon... most (if not quite all) at once. He also apparently [[WarriorPoet wrote the poem]] ''Road of Kings'', used as chapter heads in ''Literature/ThePhoenixOnTheSword'', his debut story - and is introduced to the world as a king, drawing up a map of the Northern lands hitherto largely unknown to his Hyborian subjects. And he's a benevolent and extremely''competent'' ruler, at that!

* Butler from ''Literature/ArtemisFowl'' speaks several languages, can cook well, is an amazing fighter trained in several martial arts, is a weapons expert, and has many other handy talents. On the other hand, can't find his way through theoretical physics very well. His intelligence is probably above-average, but it's hard to say for sure because almost everyone looks like an idiot next to [[InsufferableGenius Artemis Fowl]]. His little sister is also smart, but has too much compassion to become a bodyguard, [[spoiler:and leaves to become a professional wrestler.]]

** Speaking of wizards, the Archchancellor, Mustrum Ridcully. The man can keep up with the resident equivalent of a rocket scientist without that much trouble, is an excellent wizard, as his position in the university would imply, and he's also strong enough that, while he can fireball things to death easily, it's even easier for him to just whack whatever's troubling him with his staff until it stops moving.

** Captain Carrot can punch out a troll if need be, knows ''at least'' three languages, and is quite devious. Most people miss this though due to his tendency towards open friendliness, and atrocious spelling.

** Similarly, Roran. He is both a BadassNormal and TheDeterminator, but is also a master tactician, capable of capturing within a few days a town under seize that had stymied the Varden for months.

* In Robert Asprin's ''Literature/MythAdventures'':

[[folder:Examples A to C]]

** Jean is officially the brawn to his friend Locke Lamora's brains, but is book-smart to Locke's cunning. Being the son of a merchant, he's also gifted with numbers.

* ''Literature/TheWarOfTheWorlds'': The narrator's medical student brother. He's up front when a bicycle shop is looted and rides a bicycle with a flat tire several miles before it completely falls apart under him. Described as an expert boxer, goes up against three men to assist Mrs. and Miss Elphinstone - the women travelling in a dogcart and pony. The brother also steers the dogcart across a stream of people fleeing London. The man's enough of a bruiser to be twice mistaken for a railroad employee at Waterloo Station, but intelligent enough to refugee across the Channel with Mrs. and Miss Elphinstone.
* ''Literature/PrideWars'': Citizens of Singara are expected to be great scientists and warriors.
* ''Literature/TheRadix'': Edgar Wurm is cryptography genius, and a strong fighter. As he puts it, "It always surprises people when they get their ass kicked by a mathematician".

* R. Scott Bakker's ''Literature/SecondApocalypse'':
** Kellhus looks like a tall and strong warrior, but he's also an ImpossibleGenius.
** Cnaiur urs Skiotha is a hulking barbarian warlord with a surprisingly penetrating insight and a very fine grasp of strategy.
** Maithanet is a large and imposing man as well as the genius Shriah of the Inrithi, the fantasy equivalent to the Pope. When Inrilatas tries to assassinate him, [[spoiler:he crushes the man's skull with his bare hands]].

* Loial in the ''[[Literature/TheWheelOfTime Wheel of Time]]'' series is a giant [[OurOgresAreHungrier Ogier]] who has also been reading books for almost a century.
** The Dragon Reborn eventually gets this when he accepts his past memories as part of his reincarnated self.
** Perrin thinks that he's [[RunningGag a simple blacksmith]], but is actually tremendously clever, tactical, and carries ''Mjolnir'' besides.
* ''Literature/BelisariusSeries'',
** Anastasius is a huge and ugly brute of a soldier, who wields an enormous longbow which only someone as hugely strong as him can pull, and yet is immensely fond of deep, philosophical musings.
** Also from that series, Ousanas (wields a ginormous spear, fond of debating philosophy with Anastasius, to everyone else's dismay), Eon (warrior-king...who has one of the largest libraries in the known world and has read most of it), Raghunath Rao (the best assassin in India, one of only two men in the world to have survived a fight with [[FourStarBadass Rana Sanga]], argues Ousanas's favourite Greek philosophers are full of it).

* In Robert Asprin's ''Literature/MythAdventures'', Chumley is a giant troll with the mind of a college professor. However, trolls generally play dumb so that they can get a mercenary work.
** Klahdish bodyguards Guido and Nunzio are also quite bright, despite appearing to be big dumb goons. From what was mentioned, they both got degrees in a college; specifically Guido got a master's type degree in financial college; Nunzio also was at least a schoolteacher and then an animal trainer ("seemed like a logical extension") before joining [[TheMafia the Mob]].
* Joe Miller in Creator/PhilipJoseFarmer's ''Riverworld'' books is an 800-lb prehistoric "titanthrop" who is the most fearsome warrior in the series. He is also capable of matching wits with his best friend [[Creator/MarkTwain Samuel Clemens]] and with Theatre/CyranoDeBergerac.
* Trolls in ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' fit this trope if exposed to colder temperatures. Their brain is made of silicon, which operates more efficiently in colder temperatures than warmer ones. However, there is an absolute limit, because although being made mostly of rock, trolls can eventually die of exposure as well as any other life form.
** The scene where it's shown that trolls can die of cold exposure also has one discovering calculus.

** Golems as well, although only the free ones show it.
** Yet another ''Discworld'' example is the Librarian of Unseen University, a wizard transformed into an orangutan who is one of the most intelligent and sensible wizards despite the fact he only communicates by saying Ook or Eek (and is usually understandable to other characters). As an ape he's got easily twice the upper body strength of most humans.

*** Similarly, Jason Ogg, immensely strong and despite an otherwise [[DumbMuscle limited intelligence]], a good blacksmith and the world's '''best''' farrier.

** Captain Carrot, he can punch out a troll if need be, knows ''at least'' three languages, and is quite devious. Most people miss this though due to his tendency towards open friendliness, and atrocious spelling.

** A non-Discworld example from Creator/TerryPratchett: Silver the Shand from ''Literature/{{Strata}}'' is a tall, heavily muscled, bearlike being with huge claws. She's also a [[RenaissanceMan socialist, linguist, comparative historian and meat-animal herder]].
* While it wasn't his defining characteristic, Franchise/SherlockHolmes was from the beginning of the official canon not someone you'd want to mess with. One suspect tried to use his strength to intimidate Sherlock by bending Sherlock's fireplace poker in half. After he left, an unperturbed Sherlock simply bent it back.
** The villain in question was, himself, a medical doctor (Dr. Grimesby Roylott) who is consistently recognized as being huge, and is recognized as such by how bad it is "when a doctor does go wrong".
* Franchise/DocSavage is repeatedly described as a bronzed Adonis. Those Doctorates (yes, multiple) weren't honorary. As far as strength goes, in the first novel, Doc ''knocks out a man-eating shark.'' His brilliant but simian looking lieutenant 'Monk' Mayfair and the gigantic 'Renny' Renwick are almost as strong, as well as geniuses in their fields. The other three of the 'Fabulous Five' fit the BadassBookworm trope.
** In fact, given information from the stories, there seem to be only three skills where Doc falls short of being a genius: singing, cooking, and... well, in Doc's own words: "Understand this, [[CluelessChickMagnet I'm no judge of female character."]]
* Leland ''Hobie'' Hobart from Creator/MichaelFlynn's ''[[Literature/FirestarSeries Firestar]]'' tetralogy.
* ''Literature/HonorHarrington'' is positively in love with this trope. The examples start just from its title character, Honor Harrington, who, in addition to her military genius, is also a ''very'' big and strong {{heavyworlder}} woman with a 7'th degree black belt in ''coup de vitesse''. There are also Anton Zilwicki (the genius hacker and intelligence officer built like a brick outhouse and a three times Greco-Roman wrestling champion in Manticoran Games) and Sir Horace Harkness, another brilliant hacker and engineer who fights with {{Space Marine}}s just for fun. A number of marines themselves qualify too -- like General Kevin Usher, the chief Havenite cop, who once [[ObfuscatingStupidity affected a persona of a drunkard]], or Brigadier Thomas Santiago Ramirez, who, being {{heavyworlder}}, is much bigger and stronger than most of the cast, or Major Thandi Palane, Victor Cachat's girlfriend... And [[LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters many, many others]].

* ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'' collects a few:
** Archmaester Marwyn. He's described as looking more like a dockside thug than one of the leaders of an order dedicated to scholarly knowledge, short and muscular with broad shoulders, an ale belly and a broken nose.
** Oberyn is a noted warrior but he is known to have spent years traveling the world, studied at the Citadel, and studied [[MasterPoisoner rare poisons]], which he applies to his weapons. He's in fact a very dangerous warrior, who soldiered in the Disputed Lands and once formed his own sellsword company.
** Jon Snow is a skilled swordsman at a very young age, and a noted to be very clever since book one. He is quite forward thinking in his approach as Lord Commander: he wants to build "glass gardens" to farm food in the winter (much like in Winterfell), he contemplates raising money to buy glasses in Myr and training apprentices to serve under them. He's also one of the few who submits captured wights to a scientific method and put them under observation to see if there's anything to be learned. He also manages to broker a favorable loan from the Iron Bank of Braavos after haggling with the Braavosi in a manner that impresses the latter.
* Far from the lumbering moron of the film adaptations, ''FrankensteinsMonster'' is a full Genius Bruiser in Creator/MaryShelley's original novel. "The creature" educates himself very quickly by spying on a girl's lessons through a crack in a wall, growing into a remarkably intelligent, eloquent, and philosophical man. He is also an extremely powerful physical specimen, resistant to cold and injury as well as immensely strong, fast, and agile.
* Similarily, Edgar Rice Burroughs's Literature/{{Tarzan}} is not at all the muscular simpleton portrayed in the films. Raised by the (naturally) illiterate Great Apes, he ''teaches himself to read and write English from a bunch of books'' after finding his dead (human) parents' long-abandoned cabin. By the end of the second book -- a matter of months -- he has become [[{{Omniglot}} fluent in French, English, Arabic, and Waziri]]; learned the skills of the French Secret Service; and developed into a polished gentleman with a dry and somewhat dark sense of humor... who is still strong [[LightningBruiser and fast]] enough to, armed with nothing but a knife, kill a full-grown lion!
* Robert E. Howard's [[Literature/ConanTheBarbarian Conan]]. Most people only know the [[Creator/ArnoldSchwarzenegger Ahnuld]] movies, where he is a stoic lump of muscle,[[note]]largely because the young Governator had trouble with his English lines so they gave him as few as possible[[/note]], but in the original stories he's one of the smartest men in the world - not given to academic study before he became king and it became a necessity, but a very quick practical thinker with a vicious cunning, a prodigious gift for languages, and surprising depth of thought when called for.
** This aspect of the character is probably highlighted most clearly in ''Literature/TheBlackStranger'', a pirate yarn in which he single-handedly outfights and outwits Pictish warbands, viking raiders, cut-throat pirates, an exiled noble ''and'' a hunting demon... most (if not quite all) at once.
** He also apparently wrote the poem ''Road of Kings'', used as chapter heads in ''Literature/ThePhoenixOnTheSword'', his debut story - and is introduced to the world as a king, drawing up a map of the Northern lands hitherto largely unknown to his Hyborian subjects. And he's a benevolent and quite ''competent'' ruler, at that!
---> Conan: "Let me live deep while I live; let me know the rich juices of red meat and stinging wine on my palate, the hot embrace of white arms, the mad exultation of battle when the blue blades flame and crimson, and I am content. Let teachers and priests and philosophers brood over questions of reality and illusion. I know this: if life is illusion, then I am no less an illusion, and being thus, the illusion is real to me. I live, I burn with life, I love, I slay, and am content."
** Howard hints Conan was actually ''the most competent ruler of the entire world at his time'', if you consider balance between taxes and quality of life a way to know how good a ruler can be:
--->Conan: "I found Aquilonia in the grip of a pig like you--one who traced his genealogy for a thousand years. The land was torn with the wars of the barons, and the people cried out under oppression and taxation. Today no Aquilonian noble dares maltreat the humblest of my subjects, and the taxes of the people are lighter than anywhere else in the world."
* Many of Creator/RobertEHoward's larger-than-life pulp heroes - Conan, King Kull, SolomonKane, etc. - are not just Genius Bruisers, but Genius LightningBruiser [[TheBerserker Berserkers]]. The same also goes for many other pulp characters (notably Tarzan, as mentioned above). Seriously, these are ''very scary people'', folks; thank gods they all have ''scruples''...
* In ''Literature/{{Temeraire}}'':
** Temeraire and Maximus are heavyweight dragons and veteran soldiers, but enjoy working out mathematical problems together. Temeraire himself is one of the most intelligent characters in the series, loves to read the ''Principia Mathematica'', and is a 25-tonne OneManArmy with a devastating BreathWeapon.
** Perscitia is a subversion of this, because although she's a dragon and therefore automatically a bruiser and is smart enough to have independently come up with logarithmic tables and the Pythagorean Theorem, she's also a self-admitted coward.
* A not-uncommon component of books by Creator/JohnRingo.
** The main protagonist, Michael "Mighty Mite" O'Neal, in the ''Literature/LegacyOfTheAldenata'', is described as being almost as broad as he is tall, with none of it fat. O'Neal was also one of the primary designers of the PoweredArmor he and his troops later use.
** The SpaceMarines in particular in the ''Literature/IntoTheLookingGlass'' series are all powerfully built, and highly intelligent, having to grapple not only with hostile aliens but with particle physics.
* King Anheg of Cherek in Creator/DavidEddings' ''[[Literature/TheBelgariad Belgariad/Mallorean]]'' stories is a large, Viking-looking man, quite capable of wreaking havoc in battle, but is also considered clever and scholarly, spending many hours in his extensive library.
** Ulath, of its SpiritualSuccessor, ''Literature/TheElenium'' is seven feet tall, grim-looking and [[TheQuietOne quiet]]. He also possesses remarkable intellectual depth in the fields of religious study, history, and philosophy. Bhlokw, the Troll-Priest may be another example, being a Troll who cheerfully engages Ulath in philosophical debate.
* Jean, partner to Literature/GentlemanBastard Locke Lamora, is officially the brawn to his friend's brains, but is book-smart to Locke's cunning. Being the son of a merchant, he's also gifted with numbers.

* The eponymous VillainProtagonist of ''Literature/SpaceVulture''.
* Captain Otto Harkaman of ''Space Viking'' is used at least once as a byword for TheBigGuy, but he's also an extremely well-read historian who rarely fails to grab a few new history books every time he loots a city. Justified, because there's absolutely frak-all to do on board a ship in Creator/HBeamPiper's Terrohuman Future History during a thousand or so hours in hyperspace before your arrival, leading all officers to adopt hobbies - his crew includes a gunnery officer who's a landscape painter, and an astrogator who's attempting to express physics in music.
* Sgt. Taura, the eight foot tall genetically engineered super-soldier from Creator/LoisMcMasterBujold's ''Literature/VorkosiganSaga'', has an IQ of 135.
** Aral Vorkosigan himself. He's one of the best tactician and strategist of Barrayar's history, turn out to also be one of its best stateman, has the culture and knowledge that comes with this and his Vor education, and in his prime was a powerful hand-to-hand fighter able to go toe-to-toe with the hulking and dangherous Sgt Bothari.
* Most [[Literature/{{Animorphs}} Hork-Bajir]] are rather dim, but one in every ten thousand has intelligence on par with other more intelligent species. Oh yeah, and they are also seven-foot-tall behemoths covered in blades.
** There's also the odd examples from the main ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}'' themselves: Rachel and Jake. In early books Rachel is sold as a straight Genius Bruiser, with chapters lingering on her excellent grades and tendency to collect quotations from Sun Tzu, while Jake is presented as an academically mediocre everyman. As the books progress, however, Rachel's BloodKnight nature slowly begins to overwhelm any trace of strategy she might have had, while Jake's years of leading a guerilla force mold him into a brilliant commander.
** According to [[TokenNonhuman Ax]], Andalite warriors are supposed to be scientists and artists as well as soldiers. In practice the level of compliance with this ideal varies.
* Justicar Alaric from the ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000 Literature/GreyKnights'' novels. As a Space Marine he can seriously kick ass, but when crunch time comes, it's his curiosity, intelligence and ability to think on his feet that pulls him through. It's explicitly noted at least once that his sharpness of mind is unusual and seen as a possible danger.
* Charles Beckendorf from ''Literature/PercyJacksonAndTheOlympians'' is not only a skilled craftsman, but also built like a gorilla.
* Henry, a college student from ''Literature/TheSecretHistory'', is a brilliant linguist and scholar, whose physical strength comes as a shock to most people. Including, sometimes, himself. [[spoiler: It's implied that he broke open a man's skull by punching him..]]
* [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold Brendan Sealock]], in William Barton and Michael Capobianco's collab novel ''Iris'', is a hulking, craggy-faced amateur boxer... who just so happens to also be a technological genius.
* Dr. Impossible, the VillainProtagonist of ''Literature/SoonIWillBeInvincible'', began his career in supervillainy after a FreakLabAccident gives him super strength and speed, to go along with his 300 IQ and mastery of technical things. He's not nearly as strong or fast as any of his heroic nemeses, but he's more than capable of ripping an ATM out of the wall or overturning a semi, he can move in BulletTime when he concentrates, and bullets simply bounce off his skin (although they do leave nasty bruises).
* Uther Doul, the soldier/philosopher/historian/possibility theorist from ''[[Literature/PerdidoStreetStation The Scar]]'' embodies this trope so hard it's almost a StealthParody. Although his fighting style is so ruthlessly perfected and artful, you'd be better off calling him a Bookworm Badass than an anything-Bruiser.
* Shadow, the protagonist from Neil Gaiman's ''Literature/AmericanGods'', is definitely this trope. It's revealed as the book goes on that as a child he was a nerdy, bookish kid, but by adulthood most people tend to treat him as DumbMuscle and he actually comes out and says he ''likes'' being TheBigGuy -- people leave you alone and don't demand much of you.
* In Creator/MaryGentle's ''Literature/WhiteCrow'' stories, recurring character Baltazar Casaubon. [[TheBigGuy Very tall]], [[StoutStrength very fat but very strong]], [[{{Cloudcuckoolander}} somewhat spacy]], and ''always'' an absolute prodigy in his field (which changes from book to book).
* Derek Souza of the ''Literature/DarkestPowers'' trilogy. He's in grade 10, but is taking college-level courses in everything, and is a good strategist and tactician. As for the bruiser part, he's over 6 feet tall, built like a linebacker... and is a werewolf. As such, he has enhanced strength, to the point where he once [[DoesNotKnowHisOwnStrength (accidentally)]] broke a kid's back and quite possibly paralyzed him by tossing him at a wall. ''Without looking''.
* In ''Literature/TheSquiresTales'', Gerald Morris writes Sir Gawain as one of these.
* ''Literature/CodexAlera''.
** Doroga. He's a CoolOldGuy from the Gargant Clan of the Marat, a ProudWarriorRaceGuy so musclebound he [[SleevesAreForWimps has to rip the sleeves off to get shirts to fit him]]. He also learned to read extremely quickly, is a pretty good tactician, and has a talent for figuring out the emotions and motivations of others, and for [[ThePlan plans of many kinds.]].
** Ambassador/Warmaster Varg of the Canim from the same series also qualifies. Any Cane is an 8+ foot tall WolfMan ProudWarriorRaceGuy, but Varg is big, strong, and a skilled warrior even among his own people- and he's also a highly skilled [[TheChessmaster Chessmaster]] (both metaphorically and [[SmartPeoplePlayChess literally]]), a shrewd tactician, and something of a student of military history as well. It's very telling that GuileHero Tavi picked up a fair bit of what he knows via interacting with Varg.
* Fandarel of the ''Literature/DragonridersOfPern'' series. He is the Mastersmith, the highest-ranking Smith on the planet. He is described as being a giant of a man, tall, broad, and heavily muscled. But he is also a genius when it comes to machinery. In the first book he [[spoiler: rebuilds a LostTechnology, namely flamethrowers, after a very short period of studying one example.]] In later books he is shown [[spoiler: creating a telegraph system for Pern, as well as building a set of backup batteries for AIVAS]] and other feats of ingenuity and reverse engineering. [[spoiler: Though AIVAS did help him with the batteries, they were based on a design he had used in making the telegraphs.]]

* ''Literature/TheHobbit'': Smaug, which contrasted to popular characterizations of dragons at the time.
* Deconstructed and Reconstructed with Major O'Mara from ''Literature/SectorGeneral'': he always wanted to be a psychologist but was always assigned manual labor because of his enormous build. This drove him to become a foul-tempered DeadpanSnarker, which made him a better psychologist when he finally became one.
* Egyptologist Radcliffe Emerson, husband of Literature/AmeliaPeabody, is described by his wife as "Herculean" and also as "the greatest archeologist of this or any other age." His daughter-in-law can do charity medical work safely in the worst slums partly because she is widely loved, but also because "I will tear out your liver" if a hair of her head is mussed.
* In L. Jagi Lamplighter's ''[[Literature/ProsperosDaughter Prospero in Hell]]'', Calvin, Mephisto's "Bully Boy", [[HiddenDepths turns out to be]] a college professor.
* In''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'' "Cujo" Hendricks is actually one, though his status as TheBrute and tendency to not talk much causes Harry to think he's just DumbMuscle. In the short story ''Even Hand'', however, he's shown to be quite intelligent. He has a degree in Philosophy, is seen writing a thesis, and regularly quotes classic literature when he disagrees with his boss Johnny Marcone.
* Roman in Creator/SergeyLukyanenko's ''Literature/{{Competitors}}'' looks like a heavyweight boxer and is not shy about punching people out when he has to. He is often seen beside Zinovy, the head of the Seekers, and most assume he is just dumb muscle. Then he gets back to their base and puts on his labcoat. Turns out Roman has a Ph.D. in Computer Science and specializes in AI research. He also barters well. Also Oleg, who is a sysadmin for a local newspaper but is in excellent physical condition and loves sports.
* Taran'atar in the Literature/StarTrekDeepSpaceNineRelaunch. Kira Nerys is used to seeing him in the holosuite, spending his spare time training himself for battle. Usually this consists of fighting hideous and powerful opponents; but on one occasion she finds him studying advanced mathematics - at a level far beyond her comprehension.
* ''Literature/XWingSeries'': Voort saBinring, aka "[[PigMan Piggy]]", is a member of a DumbMuscle species who was subjected to intelligence-enhancing experiments. Able to calculate hyperspace coordinates ''mentally'' (generally, this task is handled by a navigation computer). Get into a fight with him, you'll almost certainly be incapable of coherent speech for the next half hour or so.
* Ivor in ''Perseus Spur'' by Creator/JulianMay is a massive fitness trainer who can use a high-tech collar to enhance his already insane muscle development until he can lift a couple of hundred kilograms, and who is smart enough that he speaks in SesquipedalianLoquaciousness, such as referring to his job as "quotidian ennui". He's also a talented chef.
* Creator/JulesVerne's Literature/RoburTheConqueror, in the novel of the same name.
* The Boneys from ''Literature/XeeleeSequence'' novel ''Raft''. Despite their tribelike mannerisms, they play with orbital mechanics with an ease that rivals trained scientists.

* Geralt of Rivia, the main character of ''Literature/TheWitcher'' is one. He is a monster-hunter and curse-breaker for hire, and acknowledged as the finest swordsman alive. His teachers also gave him a thorough grounding in a wide variety of academic fields which are useful in his profession, including (but not limited to) magic, alchemy, anatomy, forensic science, zoology, ecology, history, folklore and political theory.
** From the same verse, Sigismund Dijkstra. Dijkstra makes a point of subverting every expectation people have of professional spymasters, being [[TheBigGuy seven feet tall]], [[StoutStrength built like a barrel]] and [[CharlesAtlasSuperpower so strong his presence scares the piss out of career soldiers.]] Also, [[FaceOfAThug he looks like he fell out of the ugly tree and hit every branch coming down]] but still [[TheDandy insists on dressing in the most flamboyant clothes he can get away with]]. He also ruled Redania ''de facto'' for decades as king Vysimir's spymaster, and even held the throne ''de jure'' as Regent for a short while, in spite of being common-born and rising only on his own competence.
* Literature/{{Sharpe}}'s friend Captain William Fredrickson. Fredrickson is a career officer, who lost an eye, eight teeth and half his ear when he was shot in the face. He is not quite as badass as Sharpe or Harper, but can hold his own against them both, both as a leader of men and a fighter. He also loves art, poetry and architecture, has enough knowledge of law to get Sharpe out of trouble more than once, speaks French, Spanish and Latin, and spends his free time making pencil sketches of landscapes and discussing politics with captured opponents.
* In the ''Literature/AubreyMaturin'' series, Jack Aubrey is a tall, burly, heavily scarred war hero and immensely successful naval commander, who always leads boarding actions from the front. He is also, along with his good friend Dr. Maturin, a Fellow of the Royal Society (Britain's most prestigious academic society). He has written a number of well-received papers on astronomy, cartography, oceanography and geometry, and built his own observatory and telescopes.
* Creator/KarlEdwardWagner's hero Literature/{{Kane}}, described by Wagner as being one "who could master any situation intellectually, or rip heads off if push came to shove". Over 6ft tall, 300lb of muscle - and one of his former occupations included being a successful sorcerer. Also something of a VillainProtagonist.
* Amanandrala "Grok" Grookonomonslf in ''Literature/StarRiskLtd'' is a [[BearsAreBadNews bear-like]] alien who is an absolutely terrifying combatant. He's also quite good with tech and cryptography, though not as much as Jasmine King.
* Prof. Alois Berg, better known as "Big Al", one of the Escapist's closest friends and allies in ''Literature/TheAmazingAdventuresOfKavalierAndClay'', as well as the spinoff ''Escapist'' comic. He met the Escapist when both were working at a circus -- Big Al was a freak, caged like an animal due to his monstrous size. As he's described in the novel, "He can rip open a steel drum like a can of tobacco, lift a train carriage by one corner, play the violin like Paganini, and calculate the velocity of asteroids and comets, one of which bears his name."
* Alex Kilgour: the incomprehensibly Scottish heavy-worlder and right hand man to Literature/{{Sten}} is a genius tactician, communications and demolitions expert.
* In the second book of ''Literature/TheBlackCompany'' the [[EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep Lieutenant]] is shown wielding a mighty greatsword against the inhuman monsters of the Black Castle. A few scenes later, he's setting up elaborate, comprehensive siege works against the same castle with the finesse of an orchestra conductor.

* Ben in ''Literature/TheLeonardRegime''.
* Tsovinar of ''Literature/GloryInTheThunder'' is a tall, strong woman capable of generating earthquakes with her mind. She's also a published author and spends much of her time studying the nature of Aspects.
* Literature/PhilipMarlowe the HardboiledDetective in the stories by CreatorRaymondChandler. He's tall and as tough as they come as well as extremely StreetSmart and an insightful detective. He [[SmartPeoplePlayChess studies chess]] in his spare time and occasionally making references to very academic subjects that go right over the heads of the people around him.
* DimeNovel hero Literature/NickCarter is adept at all the arts and sciences, but is also a highly trained fighter; when that isn't enough, he also carries two spring-loaded revolvers concealed up his sleeves.
* In the ''Literature/{{Noob}}'' novels, Fantöm is explictly using AwesomenessByAnalysis while being TheBigGuy in his team.

* Bear of ''Literature/FairyTaleNovels'' is big and strong enough to have been a football player in school, but preferred writing poetry (the best in class) and studying art, later becoming a stonemason.
* Both Tennyson and Brewster hold this role in ''Literature/{{Bruiser}}'', Brewster through his sheer size and eidetic memory and Tennyson through extensive training and having two professors for parents.

* ''Literature/SpellsSwordsAndStealth'':
** Grumph is a half-orc bartender who tends to say as little as possible and mainly sticks to brewing ale and bartending. So when it comes time for four random characters to impersonate four hapless adventurers, the choice of who should play the role of a Barbarian seems obvious. During their first real fight, though, it quickly becomes clear that Grumph is much more suited for the role of Wizard, being able to quickly understand, memorize, and cast complex spells, while also possessing a keen intellect that allows him to pick up on things much quicker than his companions. Despite becoming a mage, he understands that he can't rely exclusively on his friends for protection from physical harm, so he also wields a blade. Later on, when he has to become a mage to officially petition the Guild for help to help his friends, he immediately asks to take the test, which usually requires that a candidate prepare for months. Everyone is shocked and assumes he'll fail spectacularly. However, his solutions, atypical for a normal mage, frequently involve a combination of magic, brains, and good old-fashioned brawn. For example, his first challenge involves passing through a wall of fire into a dungeon. A normal wizard would spend several minutes preparing spells. Grumph just rushes in, surprising the wizards, who are busy preparing to counter him.
** Bert, a member of the gaming group Russell and Tim form in ''Split the Party'', is a big man described as looking more likely to stuff ''SS&S'' players into trash cans than be one himself. However, his character is a gnome GadgeteerGenius and Bert puts a lot of effort in understanding the game rules to better plan for encounters.
* Rowan Longstripe in ''{{Literature/Tasakeru}}'' treads the line between this and BadassBookworm.
* ''Literature/TheHungerGames'': Thresh spends majority of the Game camped out in a wheat field that [[MuggingTheMonster not even the Careers want to risk trespassing.]] Katniss and Peeta notes that not only did it given Thresh the advantage of being the most nourished competitor, but because of all the potential hazards in the field, it would make going after him risky.
* ''Literature/TheChroniclesOfAncientDarkness'' provides a villainous example in the form of Thiazzi, the mage of the Oak Clan. He's so strong that he's regarded as the [[WorldsStrongestMan strongest man of the Forest]]. He's also a cunning mage, and he demonstrates in ''Oath Breaker'' the true extent of his ability to [[ManipulativeBastard manipulate]] and fool the masses. He drives the clans of the Deep Forest to war among each other by [[spoiler:murdering [[PlayingBothSides both sides']] mages and taking their places [[MasterOfDisguise with convincing disguises]]]]. He then [[spoiler:orates both sides to unite]] and would have [[spoiler:lead them into another war against the clans of the Open Forest]] had he not been stopped. He's also able to stay one step ahead of the heroes as they chase him throughout the Forest until the climax.
* ''Literature/WolfHall'' has its protagonist, Thomas Cromwell. While he mainly uses words and manipulation in the present day, he was a brawler in his youth and spent several years as a mercenary in Italy and France and remains quite physically imposing--at one point he drags the Duke of Suffolk, who is taller than him and half in armor, out of a room, and when startled in a dark courtyard has a knife to the man's throat in an instant. He might prefer not to use violence, but everyone knows that he still ''could'', and he's not above taking advantage of that.
* Steve Perry's ''Literature/MatadorSeries'':
** Sleel, ex-bouncer turned Matador (high-level bodyguard) is revealed to have several university degrees and to have written a successful series of books under a pen name. Oh, he also amassed a considerable fortune which he uses to fund a number of orphanages.
** Another Matador, Saval Bork, is a heavy-worlder who sings opera at professional level.
* The German booklet series ''Maddrax'' has the [[{{Ratmen}} taratzes]]. They are much bigger, stronger, faster and more resilient than humans, but most of them are not very smart. Compared to humans, they are about as intelligent as toddlers. An exception, however, are so-called taratzes kings. They can be equivalent, or even superior, to a human being in their intelligence, thus qualifying for this trope.
* ''LightNovel/TheWeaknessOfBeatriceTheLevelCapHolySwordswoman'' has Boo Boo, an Iberian Orc. The "Bruiser" part is apparent from the beginning, given that he's four metres tall, nearly as wide, and can defeat a kilometre-long dragon singlehandedly. The "Genius" part is less apparent, especially since he's BookDumb (thanks to being orphaned at a young age). However, he is knowledgeable about the things he needs to survive in the wilderness, and as the series goes on, he demonstrates intelligence in other fields. A good example is when he manages to deceive [[spoiler:the Sage, a character who was initially presented as being a FutureBadass to Beatrice. He claimed that the real Beatrice has a mole on the back of her neck, normally hidden by her hair, and the Sage's lack of this means she must be an imposter. The Sage responded by revealing that she did have the mole... only for Boo Boo to reveal that he'd lied, hence confirming that the Sage was merely copying Beatrice's appearance]].

* In Chapter 1 of Grady Hendrix' ''Literature/PaperbacksFromHell'', Philip St. George III, the hero of Michael Avallone's ''The Satan Sleuth trilogy'', is described as "one hundred and eighty pounds of whipcord muscles" with "a mind bordering on [[UsefulNotes/AlbertEinstein Einstein]] IQ."
* In the Literature/ModestyBlaise novel ''A Taste for Death'', the villain Simon Delicata is a huge man with the strength to kill a person with a single blow or to tear steel security shutters right off the wall. But he's not dumb muscle; he's smart enough to be the leader of any group of villains he's involved with.

* Similarily, Edgar Rice Burroughs's Literature/{{Tarzan}} is not at all the muscular simpleton portrayed in the films. Raised by the (naturally) illiterate Great Apes, he ''teaches himself to read and write English from a bunch of books'' after finding his dead (human) parents' long-abandoned cabin. By the end of the second book -- a matter of months -- he has become [[{{Omniglot}} fluent in French, English, Arabic, and Waziri]]; learned the skills of the French Secret Service; and developed into a polished gentleman with a dry and somewhat dark sense of humor... who is still strong [[LightningBruiser and fast]] enough to kill a full-grown lion armed with nothing but a knife!

* Similarily, Edgar Rice Burroughs's Literature/{{Tarzan}} is not at all the muscular simpleton portrayed in the films. Raised by the (naturally) illiterate Great Apes, he ''teaches himself to read and write English from a bunch of books'' after finding his dead (human) parents' long-abandoned cabin. By the end of the second book -- a matter of months -- he has become [[{{Omniglot}} fluent in French, English, Arabic, and Waziri]]; learned the skills of the French Secret Service; and developed into a polished gentleman with a dry and somewhat dark sense of humor.

* Literature/PhilipMarlowe the HardboiledDetective in the stories by Creature/RaymondChandler. He's tall and as tough as they come as well as extremely StreetSmart and an insightful detective. He [[SmartPeoplePlayChess studies chess]] in his spare time and occasionally making references to very academic subjects that go right over the heads of the people around him.

** A creepy Discworld example is "Professor" Cranberry, Cosmo Lavish's personal Assassin in ''Discworld/MakingMoney''. He's quiet and constantly reading, except when he's killing people. Even Heretofore is unsettled and would rather Cosmo hired a "mindless thug." Cranberry also got into the Guild school [[ScholarshipStudent on scholarship]], which specifically means he showed the aptitude and disposition necessary to be a real Assassin even before he actually got in.

* In ''Literature/{{Temeraire}}'', dragons in general can be bruisers, but Maximus -- possibly the biggest, strongest dragon seen yet in the series -- has little problem working out mathematical problems with Temeraire, who's smarter than almost any other character.
** To put things in perspective, Temeraire is a bit less than half Maximus' size... and Maximus is almost ''50 tonnes'' when healthy.

* Murtagh in the ''Literature/InheritanceCycle.'' He is a master warrior, possesses superhuman speed and strength, regularly goes toe-to-toe with Eragon himself, and is [[spoiler: the acting champion of the Empire, second in power and status only to King Galbatorix.]] At the same time, he's also a skilled tactician who enjoys reading and scholarship, and is complimented for his intelligence by several other characters.

** Perspicia is a subversion of this, because although she's a dragon and therefore automatically a bruiser and is smart enough to have independently come up with logarithmic tables and the Pythagorean Theorem, she's also a self admitted coward.